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12月7日，在北京大学2006-2007学年奖学金颁奖典礼上，北京大学授予美国廖凯原基金会主席廖凯原博士“北京大学名誉校董”称号。仪式上，廖凯原先生以“追寻生命的意义”为题发表演讲，以下为演讲的译文及英文原文。
追寻生命的意义
——在北京大学2007学年奖学金颁奖大会上的演讲
廖凯原
2007年12月7日
尊敬的闵维方书记，
尊敬的许智宏校长，
尊敬的各位来宾，
亲爱的同学们：大家好！
我刚刚被授予北京大学的名誉校董称号，我深感荣幸，非常感激。
今天，我想和各位谈谈生命的意义。自从4岁开始，我就在思考这个问题。和所有同龄的小男孩一样， 4岁的我是个淘气包，让母亲十分头疼。对自己的所作所为，我也非常郁闷。我想，如果我是块铺路石就好了，因为即使被卡车从身上碾过，我也不会感到任何疼痛。
早在远古的时候，作为万物灵长的人类就已经开始意识到自身的存在。在大约十八万年前，人类就已经开始思考：我们是谁？我们在地球上、在宇宙中存在的意义是什么？孔子的回答是：“老者安之，朋友信之，少者怀之。”（《论语•公冶长》）
在我看来，生命的意义在于参与生活本身，积极生活、追求梦想。参与赋予生命意义，使生命充实，并获得成就感。 当你把自己的精神财富和物质财富与你所爱的人甚至和全人类共享的时候，生命就有了意义。在你的能力范围之内，你给予和分享的越多，你得到的满足感和成就感也越大。
活着是为了奉献与分享。
亲爱的同学们，借此机会，我想向你们宣布： 我将为“廖凯原奖学金”增加100个名额！我去年承诺过设立奖学金，在未来五十年内，每年奖励100名学生。在未来二十年内，在此基础上，奖学金年度奖励人数再增加100位。
此外，我打算将我在中国境内的所有资产捐献给慈善事业，主要捐献给教育事业，为增进跨文化交流、促进国家之间和平共处和人类的共同繁荣贡献自己的一份力量。近年来，我参与了在闵书记、许校长及我的好友、常务副院长傅军教授坚强领导下的北京大学政府管理学院的建设；作为亚洲协会的理事之一，为增进中美之间的相互了解尽了自己的绵力；参与资助了北京大学和上海交通大学新法学院大楼的建设；还设立了研究中心和研究所，希望能够提升中国的软实力。我希望我的这些努力能够帮助中国实现和谐社会与和谐世界的宏伟蓝图。通过科学的方法，中国将能巩固现有的经济发展。通过中国的法治，加强建立司法机构申张正义的基石。法律面前人人平等。如果我们不能持续地改善中华文明，我们将会丧失我们的文化，因而失去我们中华文化的灵魂。我们将会失去方向，失去可以引导和支持我们未来携手共同发展的根基。
也许我的中国朋友和美国朋友听了会笑话我，但我还是要说，在邓小平、江泽民和胡锦涛领导下的中国政府是中国五千年历史上最好的政府，不但如此，在我看来，今天胡锦涛领导下的中国政府是全世界最好的。举例来说，两千五百年来，中国政府第一次废除了对农民的课税，向绝大部分的人口提供了义务教育、解决住房问题，正在主导着人类历史上最伟大、最快速的财富创造运动。
孔子也曾说过：“天下有道则见，无道则隐。”（《论语•泰伯》）他的意思是，如果一个人没有在国家“有道”的时候贡献自己的力量，就应该为此感到羞愧；反之，如果一个人在国家“无道”的时候投机取巧，从中渔利，也应该感到羞愧。
说到这里，我希望你们能够用积极、肯定的态度迎接生活，参与进来，把你的所得和成就与你所爱的人分享，与中国乃至全人类分享。
三十年后，你们这一代将引领中国和全世界。到2038年，中国将成为世界上最富强的国家。我希望，到那时，你们领导下的中国能够创造出比汉、唐、明合起来更辉煌的文明， 使中国获得前所未有的发展，并用她的财富和新兴的软实力为中国人民和全世界人民广谋福祉。
谢谢!
Peking University
2007 Scholarship Awarding Ceremony Speech
By
Leo KoGuan
Dec.7, 2007
In Search of the Meaning of Life
Chairman Min Weifang
President Xu Zhihong
Distinguished guests and my fellow students,
I am extremely grateful and honored to be conferred as Honorary Trustee of Peking University.
Today, I want to talk with you about the meaning of life. I have begun searching for the meaning of life since I was 4 years old. Like any naughty 4 years old boy, I caused a lot of pain to my mother. Feeling regret for what I did, I thought I would rather be a stone that paved the road, hence, I would not have felt any pain, even though a truck might be on top of me.
Since the beginning of time, we, the Homo-Sapiens, became aware of our own existence, perhaps around 180,000 years ago, and started to ask question: Who are we? What is the meaning of our existence here on Earth and in this strange Universe? Kong Fuzi once remarked: “It is my ambition to comfort the old, to be faithful to friends and to cherish the young.” (Analects 5:25).
I believe the meaning of life is participating in life itself, actively engaging life to pursue one’s dream, whatever it might be. The participation gives life its meaning, its fulfillment, and its satisfaction. Life has meaning when you give and share your ideas and your wealth to the ones you loved and to humanity. The more you give and share of course within your own means, the more fulfillment and satisfaction you shall receive.
Living is about giving and sharing.
In this occasion, may I take this opportunity to announce to you, my fellow students that I will add 100 additional scholarships every year for the next 20 years. This is over and above my last year commitment to provide 100 scholarships every year for the next 50 years.
Furthermore, it is my intention to donate all my assets here in China to charity, mostly to promote in the field of education; to facilitate mutual benefits among people; to improve better understanding among the various cultures; to foster peaceful co-existence among nation-states. For example, I have been involved in Peking University School of Government under the strong leadership of Chairman Min, President Xu and my friend Executive Dean Fu to further these ends. I participate in the Asia Society as a Trustee to promote and facilitate mutual understanding between the US and China. I also have been involved in helping Peking University and Jiao Tong University to build new Law Buildings. Also I am working on setting up research centers and institutes at these universities, hoping to empower China’s soft-power capabilities. Hopefully, these efforts will help China to achieve her goal of common prosperity, and to realize a harmonious society, both internally and globally.
Through scientific methods China will strengthen her economic development, and her rule of law which will uphold and enhance the building blocs of institutional justice for all. All are equal before the law. Unless we are continually improving our civilization, we, Chinese people would lose our culture; hence we will lose our soul. We will become lost people without any root that could guide and support us for the common future.
My Chinese and American friends may laugh at me, when I say that Chinese governments under the leadership of Deng Xiaoping, Jiang Zeming and Hu Jintao are the best governments ever existed in five thousand years of Chinese history. Moreover, I believe that today, Hu Jintao government is the best government on Earth. For example, the government eliminated tax on farmers that had been in existence for the last 2500 years; provided free education and housing to most Chinese citizens, is presiding over the greatest and the fastest wealth creation ever witnessed in the history of mankind.
Kong Fuzi advices us: “When the Way prevails in the empire, then show yourself; when it does not prevail, then hide.” (Analects 8:13) He points out that if you fail to take advantage of the Way, you should be ashamed of yourself; but if you profit during chaos and disorders in the empire, you should also be ashamed of yourself.
With this advice in mind, I would ask you to say “Yes” to life, and “Yes” to participation by giving and sharing whatever you have to your loved ones and to China, and to humanity.
Within 30 years, your generation will assume leadership in China and the world. China in 2038 will be the most powerful and richest country on Earth. I hope at that time you would be leading China to a greater height than that of Han, Tang and Ming Dynasties combined together. You shall lead China in giving and sharing her wealth and her newly found soft-powers to the good of her people and mankind.
Thank you very much for listening!
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